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What Then? What Now? Dr. Iva Carruthers on Trayvon Martin, Faith and Social Justice
May we not forget that neither criminality nor intelligence is a ”look,” ”walk,” ”culture” or ”talk.” Such thinking has robbed and shortchanged Trayvon, and too many others, of a life worth living. Ultimately, it’s a pernicious logic that allows perpetrators to walk free and blames the victim for violence inflicted upon them.
In 1949, Rev. Vernon Johns, the pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, (and predecessor to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.) put on the marquis in front of Dexter Avenue, "It is Safe to Kill Negroes In Montgomery".
Romal Tune, author of God's Graffiti: Inspiring Stories for Teens talks about growing up in poverty amid crime, drugs and violence and shares how biblical stories about "at risk youth" family and community challenges helped him to become a leader
To have a black male body in the world is to be an adversary of the state -- the lived experience of a black boy born inside the American empire
"We are delighted that Heber is one of our game-changing new leaders,"said The Rev. Anne Howard, Executive Director of The Beatitudes Society. "We are working toward the day when we will see a thriving nationwide web of courageous, authentic, innovative faith leaders and their communities who are engaged in the public square on behalf of inclusion, compassion, and the common good, and Heber will be a vital part of that network."
Each chapter concludes with discussion questions and a prayer which makes this a essential tool for churches and youth pastors who are working to heal wounds and inspire a generation to understand that God's promise is bigger than your past and your pain.
“We need to stop struggling to sit at the master’s table, where the master dictates and drives our agenda,” said Mathis, who also serves as pastor of Springs of Life-Giving Water Church. “If we are not permitted at their table, then we are struggling with one another for the crumbs that fall from the master’s table,”
After extended and intensive discussions Butler University and the Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis, Indiana, have announced that Professor Allan Boesak will hold The Desmond Tutu Chair for Peace, Global Justice, and Reconciliation Studies for the next four years.
